Though mulled wine (gluhwein) is generally considered the most popular winter drink – at least in Europe – Mulled Cider is becoming increasingly common in the UK. As you can imagine, this warming drink is served almost universally in the cider pubs/barges/dungeons of the West Country at this time of year. With this recipe, it’s easy to bring the spicy, festive feeling of Mulled Cider home!

Though the apple season has more or less passed, it is a fruit that can be made to last extremely well. Indeed, it isn’t unheard of for apples to remain edible for 6-12 months if stored in a dry place and wrapped individually in newspaper. Since October is arguably peak season for this universally beloved fruit I’ll assume there are a few spares to hand for this wintry Spiced Apple and Walnut Traybake.

Despite initially taking to it like a cat to water, red cabbage has become one of my very favourite ingredients. It has a sweet flavour and pleasantly crisp texture that makes it the ideal ingredient for raw slaws and salads. This recipe for Winter Red Cabbage Slaw is essentially a seasonal and festive twist on my Spiced Red Cabbage Slaw (also divine) – it’ll knock your socks off and stain your fingers a vivid purple.

St. Patrick’s Day is upon us once more and though the Irish appear to have forgotten how to play rugby – they got stuffed by the Italians – this stout chilli is certainly cause for celebration. Indeed, as you may have inferred, ‘stout’ refers not to the build of the dish, though it is rather meaty, but to its contents. Guinness is, of course, the most popular stout and is one that, as popular opinion would have it, the Irish drink almost perpetually from birth. Could there be a more perfect St. Patrick’s Day meal? Probably not.

Sweet, bitter or white, hot chocolate is the ultimate hug in a mug. It is warm, luxurious and, most importantly, contains a rather popular stimulant about which you may or may not have heard. Personally, a rich and bitter hot chocolate appeals to my inner desires, so for this recipe pure (100%) cocoa paste seemed in order. Though the recipe includes both milk and sugar – two of three fundamental parts of milk chocolate – pure cocoa helps lift this rendition above the attempts of most cafés. Indeed, insipidity reigns supreme in the world of hot chocolate – time to turn things around.